Bronze diabetes

Thalassemia is a group of disorders characterized by deficient production of the ß-globin sub unit of hemoglobin. The mandatory blood transfusions in patients with thalassemia to maintain adequate erythrocyte levels, leads to iron overload. The prevalence of diabetes in patients with thalassemia varies from 6 to 14%. We here by present a known case of thalassemia major in an 18 year old boy. He was diagnosed with thalassemia before the age of one year and is on regular blood transfusion every two weeks since then. The repeated blood transfusion is one of the common causes for haemochromatosis. Iron overload initially leads to glucose abnormalities such as insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia, which is followed by impaired secretion of insulin. Diagnosed as a case of bronze diabetes, this patient is on insulin therapy for the last two years. Currently the patient is on iron chelation therapy at Kasturba Medical College Hospital, Mangalore, Karnataka, India.